Method of uniting rails and the like.



H. GOLDSCHMIDT.

METHOD OP UNITING RAILS AND THE LIKE.

APPLIUATION FILED NOV. 9, 1912.

Patented Mar. 17, 1914.

HANS GOLDSCHMIDT, OF ESSEN-ON-THE-RUHR, GERMANY.

METHOD OF UNITING RAILS AND THE LIKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mal'. 17, 1914.

Application filed November 9, 1912. Serial No. 730,358.

To @ZZ fnl/rom it may concern Be it known that HANS Gotnsonnnrr, doctor of chemical science, a subject ot' the King of Prussia, German lhnperor, and a resident of Essen-on-thedtuhr, in the Province of the Rhine, German lmpire, have invented new and use'tul Improvements in Methods ol Uniting Rails and the like, ot which the following is a specification.

ln order to imite 'rails and the like, and more especially steel rails which are fixed in position or relatively immovable, by an alumino-thermie or similar welding process, the molten iron resulting :from the reaction has hitherto been mostly poured into a mold surrounding the ends of a rail lor example, in such a mamier that the it'oot and the greater part oit the web were fused together with the aluminothermie iron to torni a united and continuoigis piece. 'ln this process, inv which the slag was used for healing the rail heads to welding temperature, a metallic union oit the rail heads could only be obtained by jumping or l'orcing the rail ends together, but such a juml'iii'ig operation could not be 'performed when the rails were laid in paved surfaces. Even when such a quantity of aluminotherinic mixture was used that the iron resulting from the rcaction reached the rail heads, it was not possible 'to obtain a complete or sound union ot the rail heads, because, although the highly superheated aluminothermic iron easily 'fused with the comparatively thin foot and web of the rails, it did not imite with the rail heads which are of comparatively large cross sec tional area.

Now according to the present improvements it is possible to obtain a sound and complete union of the rail heads, and this is accomplished bv fusing to the sides of the rail heads, which latter have been highly heated by the slag produced in the process of joining the foot and web, one or two strengthening pieces which act as sh plates or the like.

The new or improved method can be carried out in different ways and it is possible, for example, to carry out the welding of the foot and web in the manner indicated, then to quickly knock off the hot slag and finally to surround the rails while still hot with a second mold, having spaces for the strengthening pieces which are to be fused on the rail head, after which, highly heated liquid iron is poured into this second mold. l

Another method of carrying out the preseht invention consists in providing the slag itsellE Vwith spaces for thercception of the two strengthening piecesv Ylor the head and apparatus l'or this purpos(` is illust rated by the :ierianpanyng drawings in which liiguro l is a transverse sectional eleva tion of a mold'ior uniting the tout ol? the rail and a part of the web,v while Fig. 2 is a similar view of the mold adapted lor use when fusing or welding the strengthening pieces on each side of the rail hea d. Y

ln Fig, l A is the section oil the rail ends to be united, ll 'B are the two halves of the mold and (l (f, are two mold parts passing horizontally through the upper part ol the `mold ll and extending lo the rail head on each sido. These parts (l are in the nature ol cores as they are for the purpose ot Iorming sqiiaces in the slag casting as will presently appear. ll' the superhcated liquid niatcrial be poured into the mold ll. the aluminotherlnic iron 'fuses the ends ol'ythe rail leet and the whole or a part ol the webs togdthei.' and the slag heats the heads of the rail ends and the mold parts C (l. 'lo effect the latter operation, the upper part of a mold above the parts (l (i and the rail head is provided with a space] to receive a molten heating agent X, which is preferably the slag resulting from the aluminothcrmic reaction by means ot' which the molten iron is produced. The aluminotherinic iron is first poured in the sprue opening S to [ill the lower part of the mold to effect the joint between the lower portions of the rails, after which the residual molten slag is poured into the space I. Vhen the slag has set or solidified, the mold parts C C are withdrawn from the mold B and replaced by shorter mold parts C1 C, Fig. 2, in such a manner that two spaces D D onthe sides of the rail are formed. Two tapered or funnel shaped plugs or cores E E Fig. l produce when withdrawn two holes inthe slag above the rail head as shown in Fig. 2 which holes may serve as ingate and riser respectively for the aluminothermic iron during pouring or for lany other highly heated iron used for the production of the second casting. In order to enable the iron that flows into the mold to fill both spaces D D at the same time, a communication between these spaces may be formed by means of a hole or slot F in the web preferably immediately below the rail head. It is, however, possible to cause the iron to How over the rail head and over the solidied slag to the other side of the rail head, by leaving an overflow-conduit above the solidiied slag for the aluminothermic iron flowing over the rail head from one side to the other thereof, as indicated in Fig. 2. Gf course it is possible to fill each hollow space D D by separate pours, but the best result will, as aforesaid, be obtained when the two sides of the strengthening piece are cast at the same time from one crucible only.

By lcarrying the invention into practice as hereinbefore described an exceptionally strong and durable union ofthe rails is obtained.

As a basis for the 'thermic mixture employed in carrying out the method as hereinbefore described, aluminum and any other similarly actingA metals .or alloys may be used, such as,` for example calcium-silicon, calcium-aluminum or .the like.

What I claim is:

1. A method of uniting rails and the like which consists in first welding together the lower parts of the rail sections and then welding or fusing a separate strengthening piece alongside of the upper parts or heads of the sections.

2. A method of uniting rails and t-he like which consists inV first welding together the lower parts of the rail sections, by surrounding them. with molten iron and then w'elding or' fusing a separate strengthening piece alongside of the upper parts or heads of the sections. f

3. A vmethod of uniting rails and the like which consists in first welding together tbs/ lower parts of the rail sections, by surround- Aing them with molten iron resulting from an aluminothermic process and then welding or fusing a separate strengthening piece alongside of the upper parts or heads of the sections.

4.-. A method. of uniting rails and the like which consists in rst welding together the lower parts of the rail sections, by surrounding them with molten iron resulting from an aluminothermic process, heating the upper parts of the sections by the slag roduced simultaneously with the iron an then welding or fusing a strengthening piece alongside of the upper parts or heads of the sections.

5. A method of uniting rails and the like `which consi-sts in first Welding together the lower parts of the rail sections, by surroundv ing them with molten iron resulting from an aluminothermic process, heating the yupper parts of the sect-ions by the slag produced simultaneously with the iron, in which slag apertures or spaces for producing or receiving the strengthening pieces are formed.

6. A method of uniting rails and the like which consists in first welding together the lower parts of the rail sections, by surrounding them with molten iron resulting from an aluminothermic process, heating the upper parts of the sections by the slag produced simultaneously with the iron, in which slag apertures or space/s for producing or receiving the strengthening dpieces are formed by means of insertible an removable cores.

7. A method of uniting rails and the like which consists in first welding together the lower parts of the rail sections,by surrounding them with molten iron resulting from an aluminothermic process, heating the upper parts of the sections vby the slag produced simultaneously with the iron, in which slag the spaces for, receiving the strengthening pieces are formed by first inserting a core into the mold fitting against the rail section and then replacing this core bya shorter. one.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set-my hand in the presence of two witnesses.-

HANS GULDSCHMIDT. [Ls] In the presence off HELEN NUFER, ALBERT NUFER. 

